Ski attachment for snowmobiles



Dec. 9, 1969 w. J. PUETZ SKI ATTACHMENT FOR SNOWMOBILES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 25, 1968 INVENTOR.

United States Patent 3,482,849 SKI ATTACHMENT FOR SNOWMOBILES William J. Puetz, 5015 12th Ave. S., Minneapolis, Minn. 55417 Filed Jan. 25, 1968, Ser. No. 700,609 Int. Cl. B6211 9/04; B62m 27/02 US. Cl. 280-28 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to an attachment for snowmobiles and similar vehicles employing a ski and includes a wide base ski arranged for attachment to the present ski and includes a relatively wide base with longitudinally extending parallelly arranged and transversely spaced clamping members to clamp to the sides of the existing ski and a front attachment member receiving the tip of the present ski therein. The bottom of the attachment ski is provided with at least one longitudinally extending guide or rudder element to assist in tracking.

The advent of snowmobiling has opened a new area in the winter recreational field and has evolved into a rapidly expanding industry. One of the problems faced by people using snowmobiles which employ skis of present day design is the sinking of the skis in soft deep snow areas or more important, in slush areas and causing the mobile to bog down. With applicants design for a snow ski attachment a greater support area is provided for the mobile which will thereby enable the mobile to float over the slushy or deep snow areas.

One other concept devised and included in applicants invention is the utilization of an off-center wide ski arrangement which permits and provides a compacting area between the skis. Normally the present narrow skis of snowmobiles are spaced a fair distance apart such that they will often times be outside of the width of the succeeding drive track. With applicants design of offcentering a wide base ski the ski will pass over an area and compact an area which is then followed and utilized by the drive track or tread. This compacting situation, when covering deep snow or slush definitely provides a firmer base for the track or tread to drive upon, thereby increasing the drive possibilities for the unit.

It is therefore an object of applicants device to provide a wide ski attachment for snowmobiles and the like which will provide an increased supporting surface for the snowmobile.

It is a further object of applicants invention to provide a readily detachable snowmobile ski which will increase the support area of the skis and provide a compacting area for the succeeding drive track or tread.

It is still a further object of applicants invention to provide a ski attachment for snowmobiles and the like which will greatly enlarge the ski support area of the snowmobile and which will, due to an off-center relationship thereof, provide a compacting area over a center portion of the snowmobile to provide a firm base for the drive track.

These and other objects and advantages of my invention will more fully appear from the following description made in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference characters refer to the same or similar parts through the several views, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a partial side elevation of a snowmobile illustrating the wide ski embodying the concepts of applicants invention attached thereto;

FIG. 2 is a section taken substantially along line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

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FIG. 3 is a side elevation of the ski attached to a snowmobile ski;

FIG. 4 is a rear elevation of the unit; and

FIG. 5 is a vertical section taken substantially along line 55 of FIG. 2 drawn to an enlarged scale; and

FIG. 6 is a substantially horizontal cross section illustrating applicants modified form of the invention wherein the skis embodying applicants concept are arranged in off-center relationship to the ordinary snowmobile skis.

In accordance with the accompanying drawings, a standard ski construction for a snowmobile includes the ski element 10 which element is provided with a spring mounting bar member 11 attached to a vertical strut 12. The spring mounting member 11 is usually at least attached to the ski 10 at a front 11a and rear point 11b and may be attached at certain center points therealong. This spring member 11 of course permits the ski 10 to flex as it encounters the various snow or terrain contours. The cross sectional shape of the standard snow ski 10 is best illustrated in FIG. 5 which shows a center ridge portion 13, a trapezoidal section 14 arranged thereover and a fiat ski portion 15 overlying the trapezoidal section 14. Naturally the cross sectional shape of skis produced by different manufacturers may differ and the form illustrated herein is one form presently on the market to which applicant has adapted his wide ski attachment.

A standard practice is to provide two standard width skis 10 spaced on the forwardmost edge of the vehicle and these skis 10 are utilized to provide the steering for the vehicle. Under ordinary snow and terrain conditions these skis function very well but upon entering conditions of very heavy slush or particularly deep snow and the like applicant has found that the supporting area provided by the skis is not sufficient and he has therefore provided what he describes as a wide base attachment for the ski and which is generally designated 20 throughout the drawings.

In the form shown this wide ski member 20 includes a substantially flat section 21 having a width substantially greater than the normal ski member 10 and having a generally upwardly disposed and tapered front section 22 terminating in a forwardmost end of the ski 23. A first center guide member 24 is provided longitudinally along the underside of the flat section 21 of the ski 20 and is firmly attached thereto through rivet devices 2411 or the like.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 a plurality of upwardly disposed female ski receiving members 25 are attached at spaced intervals along the upper surface 21a of the flat ski section 21. In the form shown these female ski receiving members 25 are provided from angularly shaped elements to afford an upstanding portion 25a and a base portion 25b which base portion is positively secured to the upper surface 21a of the flat portion 21 of the ski 20 through rivets 25c or the like. This female member 25 is provided with a receiving configuration defined on the upper surface 25d thereof to conform to the specific shape of the ski to which the unit is attached. Naturally the design shown is provided with the proper configuration to receive the skis heretofore defined but this configuration could change depending upon the particularly normally provided ski on the particular snowmobile.

In order to provide a clamp down device for the ski received into the support members 25 a pair of upwardly converging attachment members 2626 are provided in transversely spaced relation on the upper surface 21a of the flat ski portion 21 and extend longitudinally therealong so as to provide substantial longitudinal support to the ski unit 20 and to provide retaining means along the length of the ski 20. In the form shown these upwardly 3 converging members 26 include a base portion 27 securely attached to the ski surface 21 through rivets 27a or the like and side portions providing upwardly and inwardly arranged clamp retaining members 28 thereon. These clamp retaining members 28 terminate at the approximate height of the transverse support members 25 and clamp elements 30 are received therein through spaced apertures through the sides 28. Thumb screws or the like 30 are provided to hold these clamp elements 30 to the upstanding inclined sides 28. In the form shown these clamp elements 30 provide an overhanging and inwardly arranged lip structure 30a to be received over the top surface of the ski 10 to hold the same against the top surface b of the spaced support members 25 and thereby hold the same into the female receiving portions 25d thereof. In the form shown two pair of such clamp units are illustrated to positively hold the attachment ski 20 to the snow ski 10.

Arranged at the forward end 23 of the ski 20 is a tip retaining unit generally designated which is of generally U-shaped configuration with outwardly extending attachment elements 36 provided thereon which attachment elements 36 are again rigidly attached to the ski 20 through the utilization of rivets or the like 36a. This U-shaped configuration defines a cavity 37 therein to receive the tip of the ski 10 and the upper plate surface thereof 38 is provided with an aperture or slot therein 39 to permit the spring bar member 11 of the ski 10 to be received therein and past therefrom. This capturing member 35 may of course vary in its shape and construction depending upon the particular method for mounting the original snow ski 10 into the snowmobile.

As hereinafter stated the configuration and width of the ski 20 provides a substantially wider base for the snowmobile ski and as such will serve to support a greater load thereon or will support the same load more positively than the narrower ordinarily provided ski. This system is designed whereby the width of the ski 20 will not affect the steering of the snowmobile.

In the modified form of the invention as illustrated in FIG. 6, the same general construction for the wide ski is utilized but in this situation the ski is still wider than the preferred form and the center line for mounting the ski to the provided ski 10 of the snowmobile is off-center such that the skis as with the pair illustrated are more closely spaced to one another. The comparison in FIG. 6 illustrates a pair of such skis mounted on a normal spacing for a snowmobile ski 10. In this form the same construction is utilized again in that a pair of attachment members 40 are arranged on the upper surface of the wider ski 41 and provide the necessary hold down clamps 4242 therefore which hold down clamps again are provided with thumb screws 43 or the like to assist in fastening the normal ski 10 onto the wide ski 41. The primary difference in this modification as should be obvious from these drawings is that the center line for mounting the ski 10 onto the ski 41 is substantially displaced from the center of the ski 41. This latter modified form then places the inner edges 44 of the skis in more closely associated relationship to one another than the edges of an ordinary wide ski 20 and will therefore, in addition to providing a greater support area will provide a partially compacted section between the skis such that the following tracks of the snowmobile will be increasing- 1y supported thereby. This situation then obviously increases the traction and driving ability of the treads of the snowmobile.

It should be observed that one of the advantages-of either form of this invention is the ease of attachment and removal of the unit. The only necessary attachment occurs upon the skis 10 themselves and no modification of these skis 10 is required and rather the wide ski units would be designed to receive the individually styled skis to positively trap and hold the same therein. The only mechanical attachment of course is through the clamps 30 and screws 31. 7

It should be obvious that applicant has provideda new and unique attachment device for the skis of snow mobiles and the like which will greatly increase the support area defined by the skis and which provides a means for readily attaching the device to the existing skis of the snowmobile and which will in a modified form provide a compacted area for the driving track or treads.

What is claimed is: 1. A wide ski for attachment to the skis of snowmobiles and vehicles designed to travel over snow including: (a) a ski member having a width substantially greater than the width of the ski to which it will be attached and having a generally upwardly curved forward,

(d) means for attaching the tip of said broad ski to the forward end of a snowmobile ski; and

(e) means for capturing said snowmobile ski into said receiving elements.

2. The structure set forth in claim 1 and a guide member arranged generally longitudinally of said wide ski along the bottom surface thereof.

3. The structure set forth in claim 1 wherein said capturing means include clamp elements arranged and constructed to overlie the snowmobile ski and hold the same into said receiving elements. I

4. The structure set forth in claim 1 wherein the re.- ceiving elements and tip receiving elements of said broad ski are arranged in offset relation to the center line of said wide ski whereby the broad ski extends a greater distance on one side of said snowmobile ski than on the other side thereof.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6/1886 Seeley 280-28 2/1958 Schurnmer 280-28 U.S. Cl. X.R. -5 

